This is a story about accepting the people we love—the people we have to love and the people we choose to love, the families we’re given and the families we make. It’s the story of two women adrift in New York, a widow and an almost-orphan, each searching for someone she’s lost. It’s the story of how, even in moments of grief and darkness, there are joys waiting nearby.
Lorca spends her life poring over cookbooks, making croissants andchocolat chaud, seeking out rare ingredients, all to earn the love of her distracted chef of a mother, who is now packing her off to boarding school. In one last effort to prove herself indispensable, Lorca resolves to track down the recipe for her mother’s ideal meal, an obscure Middle Eastern dish called masgouf.
Victoria, grappling with her husband’s death, has been dreaming of the daughter they gave up forty years ago. An Iraqi Jewish immigrant who used to run a restaurant, she starts teaching cooking lessons; Lorca signs up.
Together, they make cardamom pistachio cookies, baklava, kubba with squash. They also begin to suspect they are connected by more than their love of food. Soon, though, they must reckon with the past, the future, and the truth—whatever it might be. Bukra fil mish mish, the Arabic saying goes. Tomorrow, apricots may bloom.
This book took emotional hunger to new heights in metaphor. The work led me to a dark and emotionally uncomfortable place, yet I give a huge applause to the author for getting me there. For many of the pages I just wanted to jump into the phrases and either shake some sense into a character or just simply hug them. Cooking, mothers and daughters, love and loss, and filling the empty spot in our souls were the paramount themes in this book. The character Blot was an awesome branch to the story and I loved his name as for me, it reminded me of cleaning up a spill and in the protagonist’s case, cleaning up her blood from her incessant and heartbreaking cutting. The food references were abundant and used not only literally, but also to describe feelings, physical attributes and more.
Thankfully, the book wrapped up in an honest way and wasn’t too rushed trying to fit all the pieces together.
Quotes I liked:
Sometimes, no matter how hard I tried to keep my hopes down, the popped back up like a turkey timer.”
– “Not for a moment had I allowed myself to wither into sadness. Wouldn’t. It’s impossible to know when sadness ends. It’s a string I feared I’d keep on pulling until I unraveled the carpeting of a million rooms.”
– “For the rest of his life, he realized, he would have a relationship with something that was what it wasn’t.”
Good Book Fairy. I loved this book, I couldn’t put it down. I too felt like the book brought me to emotional places I hadn’t even thought of. Since I am adopted this was particularily moving.
Dear My Inspired Table, Thanks for taking the time to comment. I’m so glad this book touched you as it reminds me that a book is worth nothing without its reader, and each reader receives something different from the book! Best, L
Review:Drive Me Crazy by Carly Robyn blew me away with its humor, heart, and heat. I’m newer to rom-com (Romantic Comedy) and after reading quite a few of them, I totally think that this one shines above.Full disclosure, I know the author quite well. She’s my daughter; but it’s the honest truth when I say I loved the heck out of this book. I was literally laughing out loud at some points and fell hard in love with Blake, the broody Brit, and Ella, the relatable journalist who could be my BFF.The pacing of the story was spot on as I fell into the fast-paced life of an F1 driver, and the toll racing takes on both their minds and bodies. I appreciated the slow burn to the ultimately spicy and steamy romance. It made the wait and tension totally worth the wait! For me, smart conversation and good banter can make or break a book. This one had so much wit and humor that I’d be happy with that alone.The settings in this book take the reader all around Europe which makes for great escapes. Ella, who hails from Chicago before moving to New York, offers many local references which I loved.On top of the heart, humor and heat, there are also some serious issues woven through the book such a loss of a parent, mental illness, and sexual abuse. These issues are presented with sensitivity and care.Bottom line, if you’re looking for a book to make you laugh with a good dollop of spice, pick this one up. Readers are all saying they can’t wait for the second in the series.@carlyrobynauthor 📘Have you ever watched an Formula One race? OR Favorite trope in rom-coms? ... See MoreSee Less
Good Book Fairy. I loved this book, I couldn’t put it down. I too felt like the book brought me to emotional places I hadn’t even thought of. Since I am adopted this was particularily moving.
Dear My Inspired Table,
Thanks for taking the time to comment. I’m so glad this book touched you as it reminds me that a book is worth nothing without its reader, and each reader receives something different from the book!
Best,
L